McDonald's Latte

It's unclear what size latte Cripe ordered from McDonald's, but a small size (12 fluid ounces) contains 71 milligrams of caffeine, while a medium (16 fluid ounces) has 142 milligrams, totaling to an average of around 107 milligrams.

REX/Shutterstock

An energy drink

And finally, Cripe had an energy drink before his tragic death, though no reports have specified what brand or type of beverage it actually was.

Let's say, for argument's sake, he drank a Red Bull. An 8.46 fluid ounce can contain 80 milligrams of caffeine, and a 12 fluid ounce can yields 113.5 milligrams of caffeine.

Averaging these out, the 16-year-old may have consumed about 97 milligrams of caffeine from his energy drink.

So, technically, Cripe didn't even reach, let alone surpass, the maximum amount of caffeine a person should consume in a day. But, of course, the brief window of time in which he had all three of these caffeine-heavy beverages is certainly concerning.

Nonetheless, the teen's untimely death drives home an important point about how powerful caffeine can be, and how each person's body reacts differently to certain substances.

What Happens To Your Body When You Stop Drinking Coffee

The coroner added during the press conference,

You can have five people line up and all of them do the exact same thing with him that day, drink more, and it may not have any type of effect on them at all.

Based on my own personal experience, the coroner's statement is absolutely true. Back in college, when I would cram for final exams, I regularly consumed similar amounts of caffeine (if not more), and within similar time windows.

If there's anything to take away from this story, it's that caffeine is, without a doubt, a drug, and we need to treat it as such.

Allie is a News Writer at Elite Daily, as well as a recent graduate from The University of Delaware. If you are in her social circle, you probably know more than you care to about her cat, Jasper. She loves to exercise, but basically cancels th ...

Allie is a News Writer at Elite Daily, as well as a recent graduate from The University of Delaware. If you are in her social circle, you probably know more than you care to about her cat, Jasper. She loves to exercise, but basically cancels th ...